USA > Massachusetts > Memorial encyclopedia of the state of Massachusetts > Part 32
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(V) John Brayton, fourth son of Israel and Mary (Perry) Bray- ton, and was born in Swansea, April 12, 1762. To him descended the old Brayton homestead, purchased by his grandfather, and there he spent his life. It was during his life that Somerset was set apart from Swansea, and in that town he met his death, May 12, 1829. He married, November 21, 1782, Sarah Bowers, a daughter of Philip and Mary Bowers, and a sister of Philip Bowers, Jr., who married John Brayton's sister. She was born July 13, 1763, and died August 17, 1843, at the age of eighty years.
(VI) Israel (2) Brayton, second son of John and Sarah ( Bowers) Bray- ton, was born in Somerset, Massachusetts, on the Brayton Homestead, July 29, 1792. He spent his entire life there, and there his death occurred, Novem- ber 5, 1866. He married, in August, 1813, Keziah Anthony, a daughter of David and Submit (Wheeler) Anthony, the former a direct descendant of John Anthony, one of the pioneer settlers of Rhode Island, who came from England in the year 1634. The Anthony family was prominent in Rhode Island affairs and was united by marriage with many of the most important families in the colony. Keziah ( Anthony) Brayton was born in Somerset, July 27, 1792, and died in the same place, October 24, 1880. Israel and Ke- ziah (Anthony) Brayton were the parents of nine children, as follows:
I. Mary, born in Foxboro, Massachusetts, May 9, 1814 ; married (first) in 1842, Major Bradford Durfee, of Fall River, who died in 1843, leaving one son, Bradford Matthew Cha- loner Durfee, born June 15, 1843, died unmarried in 1872. His mother gave in his memory to the city of Fall River the B. M. C. Durfee High School building. She married (second) in 1851, the Reverend Jeremiah S. Young, who died in 1861. She died in Fall River, March 22, 1891.
2. William Bowers, born in Swansea, April 6, 1816; married Hannah Turner Lawton, of Tiverton, Rhode Island.
3. Nancy Jarrett Bowers ; married Daniel Chase, and their only child died in infancy.
4. Elizabeth Anthony, married the Reverend Roswell Dwight Hitchcock, and their chil- dren were : Roswell, Mary B., Harriet W., and Bradford W. Hitchcock.
5. David Anthony, born in Swansea, April 2, 1824; died August 20, 1881 ; married Nancy R. Jenckes, of Fall River.
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6. John Summerfield, born in Swansea, December 3, 1826; marriad Sarah J. Tinkham, of Middleboro, Massachusetts.
7. Israel Perry, born in Swansea, May 24, 1829; married Parthenia Gardner, of Swansea.
8. Hezekiah Anthony.
(VII) Hezekiah Anthony Brayton was one of the active figures in the development of the industrial interests of Fall River. He was the fifth son of Israel (2) and Keziah (Anthony) Brayton, and was born June 24, 1832, on Main street, Fall River, Massachusetts. Here he passed his childhood, and attended the local schools for his education. Later he was sent to the academy at East Greenwich, Rhode Island, and after graduating from this institution returned to his native State and taught school for one year in the town of Seekonk, Massachusetts. He did not find, however, the opportunity for development in this calling that he desired and at the end of the first year secured a position in a railroad ticket office, where, besides the work involved in his duties, he continued the study of mathematics, especially in its connec- tion with civil engineering. His character was of the kind that New England has made us familiar with; determined to advance himself at all costs, he per- fected himself sufficiently in the study of mathematics to qualify as a sur- veyor. In this capacity he went west and worked for a considerable time in the State of Texas. He then returned to the north and settled for a time at Lawrence, Massachusetts, where he was engaged in the carding and me- chanical engineering department of the Pacific Mills in that city.
It was at about this time that there occurred in that part of the country what was known as the "Westward" movement, and this Mr. Brayton joined, in association with his brother, Israel Perry Brayton, and engaged in the grain and commission business on the Chicago Board of Trade. This business was afterward transferred to New York City, and was carried on in connection with produce exchange there. Mr. Brayton spent nearly twen- ty-five years in Chicago and New York in connection with this enterprise, and then returned in 1872 to Massachusetts, where he remained until the close of his life.
In Massachusetts he took up the manufacturing interests of Fall River, and was most actively and successfully identified with these during the rest of his career. He was made vice-president and cashier of the First National Bank of Fall River, and a number of years later, upon the failure of the Sagamore Mills, was appointed one of the trustees in charge of that prop- erty. Mr. Brayton played an important part in the settlement of the affairs of this concern, and upon its reorganization as the Sagamore Manufacturing Company, he was elected its treasurer and a member of the board of direc- tors. These two offices he continued to hold until his death, and the large growth of the business was due in no small measure to his capable manage- ment. Besides the Sagamore Manufacturing Company, Mr. Brayton was in- terested in the Durfee Mills, of which he was the president and a director.
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Mr. Brayton was regarded by his associates in Fall River and elsewhere as one of the most successful mill operators in that region. During his man- agement the Sagamore Manufacturing Company did a most extraordinary business, and paid dividends upon its stock which were phenomenal, and es- tablished a record that has not been surpassed. His great success was un- doubtedly due to the fact that Mr. Brayton found one of his keenest pleas- ures in business combinations and organization, and he was in a measure a prototype of the great captains of industry to-day. His ideas of mill oper- ation were intensive in character, and he carried their efficiency to an unusually high point, keeping their equipments and the conditions under which the hands worked up to the very latest and most modern standards. He rarely made a mistake and his judgment was much sought where financial matters were concerned. At the time that he first took charge of the Sagamore Manufac- turing Company, the foundation of only one of the mills had been laid. Quickly, however, results were discernible, and Mr. Brayton rapidly erected the requi- site buildings. Some time later, when the building was destroyed by fire, he re- built it in a surprisingly short time, it being his motto that as little time should be wasted as possible. After a time, Mr. Brayton took his son, William Law- ton Slade Brayton, into the business, and the latter became its treasurer, after his father's death.
Mr. Brayton's efforts were not confined to his own interests. On the contrary, he ever kept in mind the welfare of the community at large. He possessed a great faith in the future of Fall River, and did all that he could to improve its fortune. He was always conceiving new combinations in the business world, and was ever ready to aid in the development of young and promising enterprises. There can be no doubt that the present enormous pros- perity of the city owes much to his judgment and foresight, his energy and enthusiasm, which was contagious. It is interesting to note that the last cot- ton corporation that was formed in the city previous to his death had his backing, and that he was a large subscriber to its stock.
His death occurred at his home on North Main street, Fall River, March 24, 1908, in his seventy-sixth year. The board of directors of the Sagamore Manufacturing Company held a meeting next day, at which the following tribute to his memory was adopted:
Hezekiah A. Brayton, treasurer of this corporation since the 6th day of November, 1879, died after a short illness on the 24th day of March, 1908, in the seventy-sixth year of his age. The ability and signal success with which he managed the affairs of this corporation are recognized by every one familiar with it, and by the community at large. His per- sonality dominated the entire organization and impressed upon it his own belief in honest work and fidelity to everyday duty. It was his pride to make good, and to keep his word absolutely. A contract was to him a matter of personal honor, as well as of dollars and cents. He was a man of strong and unique individuality, direct and straightforward in his dealings, frank of speech, absolutely honest, and with a rare touch of humor. Behind his apparent impulsiveness there often lay long and deeply considered reasons. As the years passed, he acquired in an extraordinary and ever increasing degree the confidence of those
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who associated and dealt with him. He was fortunate in his life, and he died at the height of his success, before age had dulled his interest, or impaired his mental vigor. His death is a serious loss to this corporation and to us, his associates.
Mr. Brayton was married, on the 25th day of March, 1868, to Miss Car- oline Elizabeth Slade, of Somerset, Massachusetts, a daughter of the late Hon. William Lawton and Mary (Sherman) Slade. Mrs. Brayton survives her husband, and makes her home in the family residence at Fall River.
To Mr. and Mrs. Brayton ten children were born, as follows:
I. Caroline Slade, born March 10, 1869, in New York City.
2. Abby Slade, born November 10, 1870, in New York City ; married Randall N. Durfee, of Fall River, and they are the parents of four children: Randall Nelson, Jr., born March 13, 1897; Bradford Chaloner, born August 12, 1900; Caroline, born March 12, 1904; and Mary Brayton, born March 4, 1909.
3. William Lawton Slade, born November 13, 1872, in New York City; now treasurer of the Sagamore Manufacturing Company, having succeeded his father to that position. He married, June 18, 1903, Mary Easton Ashley, daughter of Stephen B. and Harriet Reming- ton (Davol) Ashley, of Fall River, by whom he has had nine children: i. Lawton Slade, born June 20, 1904. ii. Lincoln Davol, born October 20, 1905. iii. Constance, born March 22, 1907. iv. Ruth Sherman, born April 17, 1908. v. Perry Ashley, born May 25, 1910. vi. Mary Elizabeth, born June 11, 1912. vii. Richard Anthony, born June 19 1913. viii. Sher- man, born July 19, 1915. ix. Harriet, born December 26, 1916.
4. Israel, born August 5, 1874, in Fall River. He is a member of the law firm of Jen- nings & Brayton. He married Ethel Moison Chace, of Fall River, Massachusetts, daugh- ter of W. B. M. and Charlotte Chace, and they are the parents of three children: i. Char- lotte, born March 24, 1913. ii. Philip Sherman, born December 9, 1914. iii. Roswell, born April 14, 1917.
5. Mary Durfee, born May 1, 1877, and died March 18, 1889.
6. Stanley, born March 20, 1879, died June 29, 1902, at Caux, Switzerland.
7. Arthur Perry, born May 25, 1881, died October 14, 1918; he was a well known yachtsman and a prominent member of the Fall River Yacht Club, which he represented for the past five years as a delegate in the Narragansett Bay Yacht Racing Association, of which he was president from February 14, 1917, until his death.
8. Margaret Lee, born December 14, 1883.
9. Dorothy, born December 9, 1885; married, February 23, 1916, Dr. William Russell MacAusland, of Boston, Massachusetts; Dorothy, a daughter, born April 16, 1917.
10. Katharine, born December 16, 1887.
Mr. Brayton was no less happy in his domestic relations than in his busi- ness. His home was always the abode of hospitality, and expressed in its ap- pearance the culture and refined taste characteristic of its dwellers. He was a devoted husband and father, and the same characteristics which made him so popular among many friends kept the household in an ever cheerful state.
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Wlilliam Lawton Slade
T "HE Slade family is an extremely ancient one, and was known as the de la Slades. The origin of the name is an interest- ing one, and came from the old term, "a slade," which meant much the same thing as our modern glade, or a small strip of green sward in a woodland. We have the old rhyme about "Robin Hood":
It had been better of William a Trent To have been abed with sorrowe, Than to be that day in greenwood slade To meet with Little John's arrow.
Its derivation from this common noun is obvious in such names as Robert de Greneslade (of the Greenslade) ; William de la Morslade (of the Moorland slade) ; Richard de Wytslade and many others. The following is the heraldic description of the Slade arms
Arms-Per fesse argent and sable a pale counterchanged, and three horses' heads erased, two and one, of the second, a chief ermine. Thereon two bombs fired proper.
Crest-On a mount vert a horse's head erased sable, encircled with a chain in form of an arch, gold.
Motto-Fidus et audax. (Faithful and bold).
The Slade coat-of-arms as it was originally registered during the time of Queen Elizabeth was:
Arms-Argent, three horses' heads sable, a chief gules.
Crest-A horse's head, erased sable.
After the struggle and the corruption during the time of Cromwell, and probably due to honor gained on the battlefield, two bombs have been charged, and the chief changed from red to ermine. A pale counterchanged has also been added upon the field, parted per fesse argent and sable. The signifi- cance of these arms is easily understood: Sable (black) indicates a family of remote antiquity or of old lineage. Silver-puviti-The pale typifies the pales of wood used by the crusaders, and is of infrequent occurrence in her- aldry. The chief, occupying one-third of the field at top, is considered the most honorable ordinary ; it as a charge in heraldry, granted a chieftain or a commander of troops, red denoting courage.
Descendants of the family are found in Bedfordshire, Huntingdonshire, Northamptonshire, Buckinghamshire, Herefordshire, and in the County of
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Non Lawton Such
AUDAX FIDUS ET
Slade
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William Lawton Slade
Somerset, England. In the old English annals and records the name of Slade appears in the year 1300 in the Writs of Parliament, where Nicholas de la Slade is mentioned-Henry atte Slade, County Somerset, 1327. Also: John atte Slade, Chronicle Record, 1460; Richard atte Slade, Chronicle Record, 1505; Mary, daughter of John Slade, baptized in Kensington Church, 1596; Ammiel Slade, County Devon, registered in the University of Oxford, Eng- land, 1615; Francis Slade, County Berks, Chronicle Record, 1615; Grace, daughter of George Slayd, baptized Kensington Church, 1645.
The following named were among the prominent persons of the Slade family: James Slade was a dean of Chester Cathedral, England, and has a memorial window there; Sir Adolphus Slade, writer on travels, 1838; Wil- liam Adams Slade, editor and author on history; William Slade, Vermont State papers, 1786-1859; Mary B. C. Slade, writer of Sunday school sermons; John Slade, M. D., memoirs, 1836; Holmes Slade, Universalist Catechism, 1886; Frederick. Slade, Locomotive Engineering; Felix Slade, on Collection of Glass formed by him; Architect Slade, planned the laying of Back Bay; Edmond John Wane Slade, a short history of Iron clad Trains, Washing- ton, 1883; Dennison Rogers Slade, writer; Daniel Dennison Slade, "Geneal- ogy of Major-General Daniel Dennison," and "Twelve Days in the Saddle"; Charles Slade, speeches; Ann Maria Slade, a pious woman, her biography published in Fall River, 1837. (The foregoing is taken from a statement given by Ragnar Mellbin, H. A., Boston, Massachusetts, in March, 1909.)
The name of Slade, which was prominent in many of its various forms in England during the middle ages, has also been prominently identified with in- dustrial affairs in New England since its transference here, particularly with the growth and development of the city of Fall River.
(I) William Slade, the founder of the house of Slade in this country, is supposed to have been born in Wales. He was a son of Edward Slade, who lived in that country, although it appears but temporarily, since the family was identified for many generations with Somersetshire, England. William Slade was a resident of Newport, Rhode Island, in the year 1659, when there appears the record of his admission as freeman to the colony. He was one of the early settlers of the Shawomet purchase, which included that part of Swansea, Massachusetts, which afterwards became the town of Somerset. As early as the year 1680, when the first record book of the town begins, Mr. Slade is recorded as having been a resident there and the meetings of the pro- prietors were held at his house after their discontinuance at Plymouth in 1677. William Slade was a large landowner and included in his domain the ferry across the Taunton river, which has ever since been known as Slade's Ferry. This ferry remained in the possession of the Slade family until the bridging of the river in 1876, and was operated up to that time by William Lawton and Jonathan Slade. William Slade married Sarah, a daughter of the Rev. Obadiah Holmes, of Rehoboth.
MASS .- 3-20
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William Lawton Slade
Holmes Arms-Barry wavy of six or and azure, on a canton gules a lion passant of the first.
Crest-Out of a naval crown, or, a dexter arm embowed in armor, holding a trident proper, spear gold.
Motto-Justum et tenacem propositi.
(II) Edward Slade, the second son of William and Sarah ( Holmes) Slade, was born June 14, 1694, at Swansea, and was a member of the Soci- ety of Friends. He was married ( first) in 1717, to Elizabeth Anthony, by whom he had one son, William, born September 25, 1718. He was married (second) December 6, 1720, to Phebe, a daughter of Samuel and Sarah (Sherman) Chase. He was married (third) to Deborah Buffum.
(III) Samuel Slade, the eldest child of Edward and Phebe (Chase) Slade, was born November 26, 1721, at Swansea. He lived on the old Slade place all his life and inherited from his uncle, Captain Jonathan Slade (who died without issue), the old Slade Ferry already referred to. Samuel Slade was a man of much enterprise and engaged in several occupations. Besides the farming which he carried on upon the place, he also operated the ferry and conducted a blacksmith's shop. He married Mercy Buffum, a daughter of Jonathan and Mercy Buffum, who was born July 3, 1723, at Salem, Massa- chusetts, and died at Swansea, November 18, 1797.
(IV) Jonathan Slade, eldest child of Samuel and Mercy (Buffum) Slade, was born August 13, 1744, at Swansea, where he passed his entire life, and died November 16, 1811. He married Mary, a daughter of Daniel and Mary Chase, who was born December 15, 1746, at Swansea, and died there September 7, 1814.
(V) William (2) Slade, the second son of Jonathan and Mary (Chase) Slade, was born June 4, 1780, at Swansea, and resided in that part of the town which afterwards became Somerset, dying there September 7, 1852. He was a prominent figure in the community, and filled a number of offices of trust and responsibility. It was he who instituted the improvement in the ferry in the year 1826, when he substituted a horse boat for the old row boat, but this was not the limit of his improvements there, for in 1846, twenty years later, he adopted steam as the motive power. He purchased in the year 1812, together with a number of associates, the land upon which was built the Po- casset Company's mill, one of the first two mills in what was then the town of Troy, now the city of Fall River. These mills became the pioneers in the cloth-making industry, established in 1813. Mr. Slade was one of the original stockholders in these enterprises, and one of the eight incorporators who in 1822 founded the Pocasset Manufacturing Company of Fall River, a concern which may be said to have given the greatest impetus of the time to the cotton manufacturing industry in that region. He was also one of the original owners of the Watuppa Manufacturing Company of the same place. He was married to Phebe, a daughter of William and Abigail Lawton, who
SLADE HOMESTEAD
TOUTE
LIBERTE
ENTIERE
ARMORIAL ENSIGN OF abton
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William Lawton Slade
was born August 21, 1781, at Newport, Rhode Island, and died at Somerset, March 18, 1874, in her ninety-third year.
Lawton Arms-Argent on a fesse between three crosses crosslet fitchee sable as many cinquefoils of the field.
Crest-A demi-wolf saliant reguardant argent, vulned in the breast gules.
Motto-Liberte toute entiere (Liberty unfettered).
(VI) Hon. William Lawton Slade, second son of William (2) and Phebe (Lawton) Slade, was born September 6, 1817, at Somerset, where he was reared on the old Slade homestead. He attended the common schools of that region for a time and later was sent by his parents to the Friends' School at Providence. He continued to operate the old ferry, and was engaged in farming on an extensive scale. He added during his lifetime extensively to the family estate, purchasing several fine farms, and in 1871 he inherited the ferry property lying on the east side of Taunton river. This he did in asso- ciation with his brother, Jonathan Slade, and these two were the last to op- erate the ferry, as the river was bridged in 1876, thus terminating an occu- pation which had continued in the family for about two hundred years.
Early in life, William Lawton Slade, like his father, became interested in the manufacturing concerns of Fall River, and became a member of the first board of directors and later the president of the Montaup Mills Com- pany. This was organized in the year 1871 for the manufacture of duck and cotton bags, and was at that time a new industry in Fall River. Mr. Slade was also one of the promoters of the Slade Mill which, founded in 1871, was one of the first group of. factories erected in the southern district of the city. on a Slade farm. He became a director and the president of this concern, and was a director of the Stafford Mills besides holding stock in several other impor- tant industrial concerns of Fall River. He was connected also with the finan- cial institutions of that city, and in 1860 was made a director of what subse- quently became the Fall River National Bank. He was equally prominent in public affairs, serving for many years as a selectman of the town of Somerset, and in 1859 and 1864 represented that town in the General Assembly of the State. While a member of this body he was appointed to the committee on agricul- ture during his first term, and to the committees on public charitable institu- tions and on the arrangements for the burial of Senator Charles Sumner dur- ing his second term. In 1863 he was elected a member of the Massachusetts Senate, and served in that body on the committee on agriculture. He was a Republican in politics, and a strong upholder of the principles and policies of that party, but was never an office seeker, although he would not deny the popular demand for his nomination to the various posts held by him. It often became his duty to engage in the settlement of estates and he served as a commissioner for that purpose. He was a man of high ideals and strong belief, and was one of the chief advocates of temperance in that part of the State. He was a life-long member of the Society of Friends.
His death occurred July 29, 1895, and two days later the board of direc-
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tors of the Slade Mill passed the following resolutions as a testimonial to his character :
William Lawton Slade was one of the originators of this company, and has been its president since the date of its incorporation in 1871. He has always identified himself with its interests, and its welfare has been his constant care. He gave freely of his time and thought to the business of the corporation. Every subject presented to his attention received from him calm consideration and mature deliberation, and his judgment was universally re- spected. He was broad in his views, farseeing in his suggestions and looked not alone to the present, but to the future.
He was a man of noble presence, high character, sound judgment and unswerving in- tegrity. He was pleasant in his manner, and was universally esteemed and respected.
This corporation has lost in him a firm friend, a wise counselor and a sagacious adviser, and its directors, each and every one, feel a keen sense of personal bereavement.
It is resolved that we attend his funeral in a body, and that copies of this record be fur- nished to his family and for publication.
HENRY S. FENNER, Clerk.
Mr. Slade was married, October 5, 1842, to Mary Sherman, a daughter of Asa and Elizabeth ( Mitchell) Sherman, of Portsmouth, Rhode Island. She was born September 16, 1815, in Portsmouth, and died March 29, 1900, in Somerset, Massachusetts.
(VII) Caroline Elizabeth Slade, the eldest child of William Lawton and Mary (Sherman) Slade, was born January 3, 1846, at Somerset, and be- came the wife of Hezekiah Anthony Brayton, of Fall River (see Brayton VII).
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